In the cultural mixing pot that is Hong Kong, there are new exciting dining and drinking concepts popping up all the time, from innovative fine dining and internationally known restaurants coming to the city for the first time to locally-born exploratory fusion. Stay on top of the need-to-knows of the dining scene with our restaurant and bar opening guide, updated monthly.
New openings have understandably slowed down as of late, with Covid social distancing restrictions cutting catering premises’ hours down. Let’s get ready to support these local businesses as they steadily vamp up opening!
Ramato
For a touch of casual, home-style southern Italian dishes, visit Ramato which has soft opened on April 27. The name is taken from ramato tomatoes, a variety grown in Puglia in the southern region of Italy. You can expect happy hour aperitivos, hearty traditional dishes, and cocktails from Negronis and espresso martinis to their own Ramato Cooler. The space includes a main dining room featuring works by emerging Ghanian artist Wahab Saheed as well as American artist Jeff Elrod, with a stairway that leads to the downstairs bar area.
208 Hollywood Rd, Sheung Wan | +852 2549 0208 or [email protected]
Cantina
The first floor of Tai Kwun’s Police Headquarters Building used to be the colonial police officers’ canteen – and Aqua Restaurant Group’s newest restaurant in the space was conceptualized with this in mind. The group’s brand new Italian offering is chic and modern with heritage touches recalling its colonial history, retaining the original wood floors and tall period windows. It looks to be great for a cozy free-flow lunch with comforting Italian dishes made from seasonal produce or professional work lunches, with its classy decor. The plates are designed for sharing, starting with cicchetti – small appetizer plates originated in bacari bars – all the way to the large portions of handmade pastas and thin crust pizza.
Police Headquarters Block 01, Tai Kwun, 10 Hollywood Rd, Central | +852 2848 3000
Chutney Tandoor House
Chutney – the essential Indian condiment which has innumerable variations throughout India with ingredients and tastes unique to the region. Chutney Tandoor House is a new Indian restaurant in Central, with a beautifully elegant dining room housing an open kitchen looking out at Tai Kwun that calls on colonial architecture still popular in the country. The food is contemporary Indian cuisine, with dishes like tender sous vide octopus with corn chaat and mint yoghurt chutney, Keema Pav, slow-cooked minced lamb topped with crispy potatoes and quail eggs that you scoop up with toast and soft pav, and incredible smokey tandoori churning out of the two huge tandoor ovens visible from the dining room.
The gin & tonic cart, classic British tea at the end of the meal, and decoration recalls a high-class colonial train car, with a warm ambience that transitions perfectly from a business lunch setting to a sleek dinner setting. All this without holding back on any of the punchy spice and complex flavours that Hongkongers expect from a good Indian restaurant.
4/F, Carfield Commercial Building, 77 Wyndham St, Central | +852 2330 0027
Agora
Agora, a fine dining Spanish restaurant opening on May 5 and adding to Tai Kwun’s existing luxurious dining offerings, is a new restaurant by Chef Antonio Oviedo of 22 Ships (known for its seasonal tapas and “no reservations, no service charge” policy). The interior is designed to look like a moody cave, with curved ceilings, terracotta brick walls, and red marble tabletops, an intimate 24-seater with a private dining room and chef’s counter. When it opens, Agora will start with offering just dinner service, serving a degustation menu (10 courses at $1,288 or 12 courses at $1,688). Reservations can be made online now.
Shop 14, G/F, D Hall, Tai Kwun, 10 Hollywood Rd, Central
ADD+
ADD+, or ‘All Day Dining Plus’, is M+ museum’s new international cuisine restaurant. Opened on April 21, there is a huge main dining hall, a bar where you can get drinks like the Thai Martini (a gin, chili, ginger, lime cocktail), and a convenient Grab & Go section for those who want a picnic to eat on the lawn while looking out over the Art Park. Want a food preview? Egg Waffle 2 Gusti ($48) are the bubble waffles which come in combos of original, sesame, green tea, strawberry, or earl grey tea – the Hong Kong Dim Sum Box ($188) is a selection of nine traditional dim sum in little dishes.
Unit A, B1, M+, West Kowloon Cultural District, 38 Museum Drive
Mustard Bar & Grill
Mustard Bar & Grill is a new steakhouse in Tin Hau that opened on April 21. There are two dog-friendly terraces and intimate indoor spaces for enjoying The ACES HK shisha, cocktails, beer, and a fine dining experience with the straightforward, no-frills flavour everyone should expect from a good grill. Diners can expect dishes like classic roasted spring chicken, duck ragu linguine, and of course, excellent Australian Porterhouse and US Tomahawk steaks.
3/F, Golden Wheel Plaza, 68-70 Electric Rd, Tin Hau | +852 3462 2700
Mosu
Mosu is a Korean fine dining restaurant that opened on April 21 on the 3rd floor of M+ museum. Its sister restaurant is the first iteration of Mosu in Seoul. Since opening in 2017, it has earned 2 Michelin stars and the No. 27 ranking on Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2022. Executive Chef Sung Anh’s cooking has influences from North Korea, Japan, Chinese, and French cuisine. In Seoul, Chef Ahn’s contemporary Asian tasting menus have earned their awards through inventive use of local, seasonal ingredients.
3/F, M+ Tower, West Kowloon Cultural District, 38 Museum Dr, Tsim Sha Tsui | +852 2398 0291
Tai On Coffee & Tea
Tai On Coffee & Tea is a mix of old-Hong Kong cha chaan teng and new-age coffeehouse in Yau Ma Tei that opened in mid-March. They have a window opening onto Canton Road where morning commuters can grab Americanos, hojicha lattes, or even their house special Horlicks coffee to go with a pineapple puff, caramel egg tart, or lemon tea-flavoured cookie. Inside, the traditional decor that has remained since the original restaurant’s opening in 1969 has been maintained.
830 Canton Rd, Yau Ma Tei | +852 2385 2774
Cotton Tree Pizzeria
The Murray hotel’s Cotton Tree Terrace was transformed into a pizzeria in the middle of March. Diners can enjoy al fresco Neopolitan pizzas ranging from margherita to the Salsiccia with Italian sausage and guanciale with The Murray’s classic homemade limoncello, and gourmet appetizers on the pet-friendly terrace. They also offer three classic gelatos to round off your Italian summer lunch dream.
Cotton Tree Terrace, Garden Level, 22 Cotton Tree Dr, Central | +852 3141 8888
Header image credits: Cantina
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